Thomas & Friends Season 18: Week 3

OPINIONS IN THIS BLOG ARE SOLELY MY OWN; THEY DON'T REFLECT ON THOSE BY THE THOMAS FANDOM ON WHOLE

THIS BLOG CONTAINS MAJOR SPOILERS; READ AT YOUR OWN RISK

Last week, we had a little bit of controversy surrounding Duck and the Slip Coaches, and we also got some more classic elements implemented. How much more classic feeling can we get this week? Let's find out!

Duncan and the Grumpy Passenger

Written by Davey Moore

After a six-year absence (barring a mention in Don't Bother Victor), Duncan finally returns to complete the Skarloey Six. He was best well-suited for the role, and once again, Thomas didn't appear! Is it me, or is Davey Moore writing all the episodes which the Skarloey engines play major roles? :P I definitely find the grumpy passenger very amusing and I hope we see him again; maybe a clashing with Sir Handel? The plot almost reminded me of A Friend in Deed, only it didn't have a musical number. A solid episode, and the moral pretty much sums up the fanbase's reaction to a certain "flaw" in the episode, which I'll get to later.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Marion and the Pipe

Written by Mark Huckerby and Nick Ostler

People complain about the episode as they think Marion was "out of character", which I personally don't get. This is her first appearance in a TV episode, for goodness' sake! I actually know a bunch of Marions in real life; they get chatty about stuff I'm not interested in, but for the most part, I put up with it. I really like the spouting water from the pipe, although it might've been nice to see how it would've affected the town... oh well. Long story short, I find this to be another of the underrated episodes, and the same applies to the following episode.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Missing Gator

Written by Andrew Brenner

Admit it; you've often longed to see someone you haven't for a while, and it's the same case with Missing Gator. I like the continuity with King of the Railway (the recently re-boarded tunnel) and Tale of the Brave (Gator's back on his home railway), and Gator appearing in Percy's vision almost reminds me of Obi-Wan Kenobi's spirit talking to Luke (Skywalker, not the Blue Mountain Quarry engine!) Stafford's remark to Percy accidentally bumping into him made me laugh, and yes, Millie spoke again! The moral is really strong, and it's yet another underrated episode (so what if it's an abridged Tale of the Brave?) Although, what was the point of Thomas' brief appearance?

Rating: 8.5 out of 10

No Steam without Coal

Written by Davey Moore

Out of the third week's episodes, this one has got to be the best. Finally, an episode has knocked Not So Slow Coaches off its perch. For the third time, Thomas doesn't appear, and nor does the whole Steam Team, barring Edward. Timothy almost feels like a little brother to Bill and Ben; they constantly tease him and he puts up with it. Marion was also great too; she's almost like a mother or big sister figure to the twins, and it made her a three-dimensional character. And of course, Bill and Ben's comeuppance was well-deserved as they were playing around and needed Timothy's help. A fantastic episode, and probably the best of season 18 to date!

Rating: 10 out of 10

Spencer's VIP

Written by Andrew Brenner

I'm surprised nobody brought this episode up when it was announced; Spencer's VIP had been overshadowed by the previous four because of returnees and new characters. For the episode itself, it was brilliant, plain and simple. It was actually great seeing Spencer show some remorse for his actions as they resulted in the Sudrian engines showing off and causing trouble. Two fantastic morals in one episode; who'd have thought? Funny how the episode people had the least hype for turned out to be great in every way possible.

Rating: 9 out of 10

This week of episodes has surpassed the previous two by a fair margin. After the... ahem, minor slip-up in Duck and the Slip Coaches, the writing in the episodes of week three more than made up for it to a certain extent. Remember what I said about the moral and a certain "flaw" in Duncan and the Grumpy Passenger? Well, people weren't happy just because Sir Handel didn't appear. Who cares if a character appears or not?! You wanted Duncan back, but now you want Sir Handel back? Make your minds, people! He made a cameo in Disappearing Diesels! It's not like he's been forgotten about entirely!

After three whole weeks, we're only getting Toad's Bright Idea on Monday, and in October (for The Christmas Engines on DVD) and possibly December, we're getting four winter/Christmas themed episodes. Then, come 2015, we get the final six episodes for Dinos and Discoveries. Hmm, we had a similar set up with season 17; sixteen regular episodes on TV, four winter-themed episodes, and six DVD exclusive episodes equals 26 episodes a season. Am I sensing a trend here?

Week 1 Rating: 7.9
Week 2 Rating: 8.3
Week 3 Rating: 8.9
Overall Season Rating So Far: 8.4 out of 10

September 15

Toad's Bright Idea

October 28 or December
Last Train for Christmas
Long Lost Friend
Duncan the Humbug
The Perfect Gift

2015
Dinos and Discoveries